Wave of terror 2015 Featured

The recent series of attacks against Israelis is the direct result of incitement by radical Islamist and terrorist elements, calling on Palestinian youth to murder Jews. ​

Magen David Adom: Between September 13 - December 23, 2015, 24 people have been killed and 283 wounded - 24 of them seriously.

IDF: Terror attacks by numbers (as of December 24):

97 stabbings35 shootings19 car rammings

According to the Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center (ITIC), during the past month there has been a wave of terrorist attacks which began on the Temple Mount and in east Jerusalem. The attacks later spread to Judea and Samaria and even crossed the Green Line into Israel under the battle cry of "Al-Aqsa mosque is in danger."

The current wave of terrorist attacks is part of the PA's strategy of "popular resistance" (i.e., popular terrorism) adopted by the PA and Fatah at the Sixth Fatah conference in August 2009. Statements by Fatah, Hamas and PIJ spokespersons have described the attacks as "heroic actions" and "the natural response to Israel's crimes".

During the past week terrorist attacks, which had been concentrated in greater Jerusalem, spread to other locations in Israel, including Kiryat Gat in the south, Tel Aviv, Afula in the north, and Gan Shmuel (near Hadera) and Raanana (in the center of the country). The attacks have been carried out by young lone terrorists, most of them from east Jerusalem, and some from Judea and Samaria. There were also two Israeli Arabs (from Nazareth and Um el-Fahm), Palestinians staying in Israel illegally, two women and two children. They were motivated for the most part by the lie spread by the Palestinian media that Israel allegedly threatened Al-Aqsa mosque, as well as by the frustration, desperation and anger of the younger generation. Generally speaking, the terrorists have not been operatives of any established terrorist organization, and the current wave of terrorism has not been directed by any organization, but rather is directly inspired by the intensive incitement accompanying it.

According to the Israel Security Agency, October 2015 saw the beginning of a wave of terrorism that has led to 620 attacks (483 in the form of firebombs), compared to 223 in September. Eleven people (one foreign national and 10 Israelis) were killed in terrorist attacks in October, and 80 were injured, 37 of them moderately or more severely (one foreign national, 18 Israeli civilians, and 18 members of the security forces).

In November 2015, 10 people (one Palestinian and 9 Israelis) were killed in terrorist attacks, and 58 were injured. Among the non-fatal casualties, 22 were wounded in stabbings (including 5 in Jerusalem and 10 within Israel). 24 people were injured in vehicle attacks, and 12 in shootings.

Following is a list of major terror attacks against Israelis since September 13, 2015, the eve of Rosh Hashanah:

December 24

Ariel: Two security guards were stabbed, one seriously, in an attack at an industrial park near Ariel, in the West Bank. The terrorist was shot and killed by the guards.

December 23

Jerusalem: Two people were killed and one wounded in a stabbing attack outside Jaffa Gate, the main entrance to the Old City where thousands of tourists from around the globe are preparing to celebrate Christmas. Rabbi Reuven Birmajer, 45, died of multiple stab wounds to the upper torso. Ofer Ben Ari, 46, was hit by a stray bullet fired by two Border Police officers. The terrorists were shot and killed by Border Policemen on the scene.

December 20

Hebron: A terrorist attempted to stab soldiers and was taken into custody.

December 19Raanana: A terrorist stabbed three people on Saturday afternoon, one seriously. He also attempted to enter a synagogue and a home before being apprehended by security forces.

Beit Aryeh – Luban: Three Israelis were lightly injured by a huge rock that crashed through the windshield of their car.

Jerusalem: Eleven to fourteen people were injured in a vehicular ramming attack at a bus stop opposite the Calatrava Bridge at the entrance to Jerusalem, around 3 pm on Monday afternoon. The injured include two moderately, a 15-month-old baby who was seriously injured, and the baby's mother. The terrorist (21, originally from the Beit Hanina neighborhood in Jerusalem, currently residing in Hebron) was shot and killed by security forces.

December 13Kiryat Arba, Gush Etzion: A Palestinian woman who attempted to stab a civilian was shot and apprehended by IDF forces.

December 11Halhoul Junction, near Kiryat Arba: A terrorist who attempted to run over IDF soldiers was shot and killed.Gilboa (Jalame) Crossing: Shots were fired at soldiers from a Palestinian vehicle. Attacker was shot and wounded by IDF forces and later arrested by PA police.

December 1010 Dec. Between Beit Aryeh community and Luban village in the Benyamin region of Samaria: Ramming attack injured 4 soldiers, 2 lightly, one moderately and one seriously (20). The terrorist (a member of Hamas) was apprehended after a search.

December 9Afula, northern Israel: Stabbing attack foiled when 3 Arab teens from Jenin were apprehended in possession of butcher knives.Samaria: A Jewish man was seriously injured, and his wife lightly injured, when 23 bullets hit their car in a drive-by shooting attack on the road from Avney Hefetz. The attackers are suspected of fleeing to nearby Tulkarm.Hebron: A terrorist stabbed a soldier and a civilian at a checkpoint near Beit Hadassah. The soldier was moderately wounded; the civilian lightly wounded. The terrorist (cousin of the terrorist who carried out the stabbing attack near the Tomb of the Patriarchs on 7 Dec.) was shot and killed by security forces.

December 7Hebron, near the Tomb of the Patriarchs: An Israeli man was very critically injured in a stabbing attack . The assailant (21) was shot and killed.

December 6

Jerusalem, Romema neighborhood: Three people were wounded in a car-ramming and stabbing attack. After hitting two people with his car, the assailant exited the vehicle and stabbed a pedestrian. The assailant was shot and killed by an IDF soldier at the scene.

December 4

Ofra (northwest of Jerusalem): Two IDF soldiers were injured in a ramming attack. The Palestinian driver was shot and killed by soldiers on the scene.

Abud (northwest of Jerusalem): Palestinian stabbed an IDF soldier in the neck. The attacker was shot and killed at the scene.

Hebron: Two assailants stabbed and wounded a soldier. The assailants were shot and killed.

December 3

Hizme checkpoint: An IDF soldier and a civilian were shot near the checkpoint, north of Jerusalem. The assailant was killed.

Jerusalem: An Israeli police officer was moderately wounded in a stabbing attack. The assailant approached a police car on Hanevi’im Street, near Damascus Gate, and stabbed the officer. The assailant was shot and killed.

December 1

Gush Etzion junction: A Palestinian (16) tried to carry out a stabbing attack at the hitchhiking stop, which has been the site of 10 terrorist attacks in the past two months. IDF forces shot and killed the assailant. An Israeli man was light-to-moderately wounded from bullet shrapnel.Einav Junction (Samaria): A female Palestinian attempted to stab a soldier at a checkpoint adjacent to the junction in the northern West Bank. She was shot and killed.

November 29

Jerusalem: A Border Police officer was stabbed near Damascus Gate, in the Old City. The assailant was shot and killed. A 31-year-old female foreign worker from Nepal was moderately wounded in a stabbing attack as she waited at a bus stop on Shamgar Street on her day off. The assailant fled and was later apprehended.

November 27

Kfar Adumim Junction (east of Jerusalem): Two soldiers were lightly to moderately hurt in a car-ramming attack.

Beit Ummar: Six soldiers were lightly to moderately wounded when a Palestinian rammed his car into IDF troops at the entrance to the Beit Ummar refugee camp, south of the Gush Etzion junction.

November 25

An IDF soldier was stabbed and seriously wounded at the Al-Fawar junction, south of Hebron. The assailant, 19, a student at the Palestine Technical College, was shot and killed.

November 24

Tapuach Junction (northern West Bank): A Palestinian rammed a car into security forces, wounding three IDF soldiers and a Border Policeman who were at the junction assessing additional security measures to prevent terror attacks. The assailant was shot and apprehended.

November 23

Jerusalem: Two Palestinians (female, aged 14 & 16) stabbed passersby on Jaffa Road near the Mahane Yehuda market with scissors, wounding an elderly Palestinian man from Bethlehem. The assailants were shot, one killed on site. A security guard was wounded by the gunfire.

Northern Samaria: A youth (18) was lightly wounded in a ramming attack near Shavei Shomron. Later, a Palestinian tried to stab soldiers at the Samaria Brigade Junction and was killed.

Route 443: IDF soldier Ziv Mizrahi (18) was killed in a stabbing attack at the gas station on the highway between Jerusalem and Modi'in. A female officer and another woman were lightly wounded. The attacker was shot and killed by security forces.

November 22

Samaria Brigade Junction: A Palestinian (16, female from Nablus) pulled out a knife and charged at a young Israeli woman waiting at a bus stop. The assailant was spotted by a civilian driver, who ran into her with his car. Security forces at the site shot the assailant, who died at the scene.

Kfar Adumim junction (east of Jerusalem): A Palestinian taxi driver tried to ram his car into a group of Israeli pedestrians. After failing to hit anybody, he got out of the car and attacked them with a knife. One man slightly wounded. The attacker was shot and killed.

Gush Eztion junction: Hadar Buchris, 21,was fatally stabbed as she waited for a ride at a hitchhiking stop at the junction. IDF soldiers at the site shot and killed the terrorist.

November 21

Kiryat Gat: Four people, including a 13-year-old girl, were wounded in a stabbing attack on King David Street. The stabber was apprehended several hours later.

November 19

Tel Aviv: Two people were killed and one wounded in a stabbing attack during afternoon prayers in a Judaica store located in the Panorama building - a commercial center in southern Tel Aviv. The terrorist, from Dura in the West Bank, was apprehended. Hamas "welcomed" the attack. The victims: Rabbi Aharon Yesayev, 32, of Holon and Reuven Aviram, 51, of Ramle.

Gush Etzion: Three people were killed when a Palestinian terrorist opened fire with a submachine gun at cars in a traffic jam at the Alon Shvut junction, south of Jerusalem. The victims: Ezra Schwartz, 18, of Sharon, Massachusetts, Yaakov Don, 49, of Alon Shvut, and Shadi Arafa, 40, of Hebron. Four others were lightly wounded. The terrorist was apprehended.Schwartz came to Israel as part of a program in which young people come to Israel for nine months of volunteer work. The volunteers, who study at a yeshiva in Beit Shemesh, were visting the memorial established for the three Israeli teens who were kidnapped and killed last summer, and were handing out food to soldiers stationed in Gush Etzion when the attack took place.

November 13

Otniel (Route 60): Rabbi Ya'akov Litman, 40, and his son Netanel, 18, were killed in a shooting attack while driving on Route 60 near Otniel, south of Hebron. His wife and four other children in the vehicle were lightly wounded by shrapnel and the resulting crash. A suspect was taken into custody.

November 10

Jerusalem (Pisgat Zeev neighborhood): Two Palestinian youths (11 & 14) on their way home from school stabbed and moderately wounded a security guard on the Jerusalem light rail. The guard shot and wounded one of the attackers; the other was taken into custody.

Shortly afterwards, there was an attempted stabbing of a police officer near Damascus Gate in Jerusalem. Assailant was shot and died of his wounds. Later, a Palestinian youth (16) tried to stab a Border Policeman at a checkpost near Abu Dis. The assailant was shot and killed.

Tapuah Junction (Samaria): Four Israelis were wounded, two seriously, in a car-ramming terror attack directed at a group of people at a hithchhiking stop. The attacker was shot and killed by security forces.

Beitar Illit (south of Jerusalem): A civilian security guard was lightly wounded in a stabbing attack. The assailant, a Palestinian woman, was shot and wounded.

Northern West Bank: An Israeli man was seriously injured in a stabbing attack in the Palestinian village of Nabi Ilyas, when he stopped to shop at a stall.

- Border Policeman St.-Sgt. Benjamin Yakubovich, 19, of Kiryat Ata, critically wounded in on November 4, died of his wounds.

Hebron: Two teens, aged 16 and 18, were injured - one seriously - in a shooting attack near the Tomb of the Patriarchs. A short time later, an Israeli soldier was severely injured in a shooting attack at the Beit Anun junction north of Hebron. The assailant (16, from the village of Bani Naim) was apprehended.

November 5

Gush Etzion: Attempted stabbing attack. Assailant shot on site.

November 4

Halhoul junction (north of Hebron): Three Border Policemen were wounded, one criticallly, in car-ramming attack. The terrorist was shot and killed by security forces. Border Policeman St.-Sgt. Benjamin Yakubovich, 19, of Kiryat Ata, critically wounded in the attack, died of his wounds on November 8.

November 2

Netanya (north of Tel Aviv): A 71-year-old man was seriously wounded in a stabbing attack. The assailant was shot.

Rishon Lezion (south of Tel Aviv): Three people were wounded, two seriously - including an 80-year-old woman - in a stabbing attack by a Palestinian from Hebron (19) at a bus stop in the center of the city. The assailant was apprehended.

Gilboa (Jalama) crossing, north of Jenin in the West Bank:Two Palestinians attempted to stab a soldier at a a gas station adjacent to the crossing point. One assailant shot, the second apprehended.

Hebron: Terrorist stabs and lightly injures soldier near the Tomb of the Patriarchs. Terrorist was shot and killed. Later a Palestinian attempted to stab an IDF soldier in the Beit Hadassah neighborhood. Assailant was shot on site.In the evening, shots were fired from a passing vehicle towards a bus stop near Jerusalem.

October 28

Gush Etzion Junction: A woman was stabbed in the back, moderately wounded, outside the Rami Levy supermarket. The assailant was apprehended.Earlier, a Palestinian who attempted to stab an IDF soldier near the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron was shot and killed by security forces.

Jerusalem: Terror attack foiled - two Arabs (17 & 16) from eastern Jerusalem armed with an axe and a knife were arrested in the center of town (Kikar Tzahal).

October 26

Hebron: IDF soldier stabbed, seriously wounded in the morning north of Hebron. Assailant shot on site. A second attempted stabbing of an IDF soldier outside the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron in the afternoon was thwarted. The assailant (19) was shot.

Beit El (north of Jerusalem): Israeli couple and their three young children wounded in a firebombing attack on their car.

October 22

Bet Shemesh: Yeshiva student (18) moderately injured in stabbing attack at bus stop near a synagogue. Two terrorists (21) from the Hebron area armed with knives tried to board a school bus full of children. They were shot and killed by police.

October 21

Yitzhar (Samaria): Attack foiled when security forces noticed a young woman (15) approaching the gate armed with a knife. The woman was shot and apprehended.

Ofra (north of Jerusalem): An Israeli policeman was mildly injured in an apparent car-ramming attack when the driver crashed into a checkpoint, ignoring police warnings to stop. The driver fled.

Maale Adumim (east of Jerusalem): Attack foiled when security forces found home-made explosive devices in a car. Two Palestinians were arrested.

Beit Ummar (north of Hebron): Five soldiers injured - after their vehicle was stoned, the soldiers got out to arrest the stone-throwers and were rammed by a Palestinian car. The attacking driver was shot and seriously wounded.

October 20

South of Hebron (Al Fawar junction): Avraham Hasno (54) of Kiryat Arba run over and killed by truck after his vehicle was stoned. Earlier, an IDF officer was lightly injured in stabbing attack in Hebron.

Gush Etzion junction: Two lightly wounded in car-ramming attack at bus stop at the Gush Etzion junction. The terrorist then drew his knife before he was shot and killed.

October 18

Beer Sheva: IDF soldier Sgt. Omri Levy (19) killed and 10 civillians and police officers wounded when a terrorist armed with a knife and a pistol entered the central bus station, shot the soldier, grabbed his gun and started shooting. Police officers shot and killed the terrorist, an Israeli Arab (21) from the Bedouin town of Hura. An Eritrean asylum seeker, Habtom Zerhom (29), who was mistaken for a second terrorist and shot by a security guard, died of his wounds.

Jerusalem: Attack foiled by Border Police. Officers who boarded a bus full of passengers discovered a knife hidden under a seat. The owner of the knife had boarded the bus with a young child in his arms to allay suspicion.

Jerusalem, Damascus Gate at the Old City: Terrorist (19) from Hebron lightly injured two people before being shot and killed by the security forces.

Jerusalem: Woman (72) stabbed and injured while waiting for a bus at the Central Bus Station. Terrorist shot and killed.

October 13

Raanana (northeast of Tel Aviv): Two stabbing attacks in the morning, an hour apart: The first at a bus stop in the center of town, in which a man (32) suffered light wounds; the attacker (22, from eastern Jerusalem) was subdued by passers-by and held until the police arrived. The second attack resulted in one seriously wounded and three lightly wounded; the terrorist (a construction worker at nearby Beit Levinstein) was arrested.

Jerusalem: Two terrorists, both residents of the adjacent Jabel Mukaber neighborhood, boarded an Egged bus in East Talpiot in southern Jerusalem, one armed with a gun and the other with a knife. Chaim Haviv, 78, and Alon Govberg, 51, were killed, and 15 wounded, several seriously. One terrorist killed by police, second apprehended. Richard Lakin, 76, who was shot in the head and stabbed in the chest, succumbed to his wounds on October 27.

Makor Baruch, a religious neighborhood. Rabbi Yeshayahu Krishevsky, 59, of Jerusalem was killed and five wounded. The terrorist, who was apprehended, is a resident of the Jabel Mukaber neighborhood who holds Israeli citizenship, was an employee of Israeli phone company Bezeq, and was using a company car to commit the attack.

Hamas praised the attacks, saying they are "a message to anyone who harms our holy places."

October 12

Jerusalem: Stabbing attack foiled at Lion's Gate in Jerusalem’s Old City. Terrorist (18, from eastern Jerusalem) was shot and killed.

Knife used in terrorist attack at Lion's Gate, JerusalemKnife used in terrorist attack at Lion's Gate, JerusalemCopyright: Israel Police

Jerusalem (Ammunition Hill, northern Jerusalem): Border policeman was stabbed and lightly injured by a female terrorist (16). The officer managed to shoot and stop her, and she was evacuated to hospital.

Jerusalem (Pisgat Zeev in northern Jerusalem): Two terrorists (both teenagers) stabbed and seriously wounded a man (25) and a boy (13) riding his bicycle. Police shot and killed one terrorist and apprehended the second. The boy is in critical condition.

Jerusalem (8:30 pm near entrance to city): Terrorist on bus stabbed a soldier (19) and tried to grab his gun. After a struggle, the terrorist was shot and killed by a police officer.

October 11

Maaleh Adumim-Jerusalem highway: Police officer lightly injured when he pulled over a driver acting suspiciously, and the (female) driver set off an explosive device. Gas canisters were later found in the vehicle. The terrorist was seriously wounded.

October 8Tel Aviv: Female soldier and three others stabbed. Terrorist was shot and killed.Jerusalem: A yeshiva student (25) was seriously injured and another man lightly injured in stabbing attack near the light rail. Terrorist (age 19) arrested.

Kiryat Arba (Jewish town near Hebron, south of Jerusalem): Man seriously wounded in stabbing attack. Victim evacuated to Jerusalem hospital. Terrorist escaped.Afula (town in Galilee): A soldier was wounded in stabbing attack. The terrorist was apprehended soon after.​

October 7

Petach Tikva: Knife attack at shopping mall wounded one man. The knife broke, preventing further victims. Bystanders apprehended the terrorist.Jerusalem: A Palestinian woman (18) stabbed a 36-year-old Jewish man at Lion’s Gate of the Old City. The victim, moderately wounded, shot and wounded the terrorist.Kiryat Gat (southeast of Tel Aviv): A terrorist stabbed an IDF soldier and snatched his gun, then ran into a nearby apartment, where a woman was just returning home. She fought with him and managed to flee. The terrorist was killed by police.

October 4

Jerusalem: Moshe Malka (15) was stabbed and wounded on his way to prayers at the Western Wall. Terrorist was shot dead by security forces.October 3Jerusalem: Two killed in stabbing attack near Lion’s Gate. Aharon Banita-Bennet (22) was stabbed to death on the way to the Western Wall in the Old City on Saturday evening with his wife and two young children. His wife and two-year-old son were wounded. Rabbi Nehemia Lavi (father of seven), who came to the aid of the Banita-Bennett family, was attacked and stabbed to death. Police shot and killed the attacker.

October 1

Near Nablus in Samaria: Rabbi Eitam Henkin (31) and wife Naama (30) murdered in a drive-by shooting while traveling with their four young children (aged 9, 7, 4, and 9 months). Security forces arrested members of Hamas cell responsible.